[youtube=http://youtu.be/KV9-QxQI2Ew]
Bunheads, the recently canceled ABC Family series from Gilmore Girls creator Amy Sherman-Palladino, didn’t draw huge numbers — but many of those who did watch its 18 episodes became devoted fans.
The show was critically acclaimed, picking up an award at the Television Critics Association for best children’s programming, but failed to garner the ratings necessary for ABC Family to keep it on the air. The network waited months after the first-season finale aired to make the cancellation official. And, when it did become clear that the show wouldn’t be returning for a second season, Sherman-Palladino brought the cast together for one last hurrah.
For the uninitiated, Bunheads followed a Vegas showgirl who relocated to a small town in California and took up teaching dance. And, while the show’s lead, Sutton Foster, was unavailable, the other cast members — Bailey Buntain, Julia Goldani Telles, Kaitlyn Jenkins, Jeanine Mason, Matisse Love, Ra’Jahnae “Rae Rae” Patterson, Colleen Craig, Maine Kawashima, Eli Gruska, Adam Bernstein, Edgar Khachaturov, Kara Hess and Micah Moch — gathered together for a final dance as a way to say farewell and thank-you to the show’s devoted fans.
Set to Elton John’s “Blues for Baby and Me” and created by the show’s choreographer, Marguerite Derricks, the routine recalls some of the show’s most memorable dance moments, including Sasha’s (Julia Goldani Telles) triumphant and unexpected dance to They Might Be Giants’ “Istanbul (Not Constantinople).” When the dancing ends, the video closes with a simple goodbye, “For everyone who came to play in our sandbox — We thank you.”
While the dance routine doesn’t take the place of a second season, it does take the prize for fan appreciation.
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